Camping Through Africa’s Rainy Season: How I Stayed Dry
Water gushed through our campsite as I watched my sleeping bag float away. That was my first — and nearly last — rainy season camping experience in Africa.
Twenty years later, I now specificallychoose to camp during what most tourists avoid: the wet months. The secret? It’s Africa’s best-kept travel hack, offering incredible wildlife viewing, dramatic landscapes, and prices so low you’ll think there’s been a mistake.
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Rainy Season Reality Check: It’s Not What You Think
When most people hear “rainy season,” images of endless mud, soaked gear, and miserable nights come to mind. I get it, I felt the same before I tried it myself.
But here’s the truth: Africa’s rainy season isn’t a monsoon that never stops. It’s usually bursts of heavy rain followed by sunshine and fresh air. That mix creates a wild energy in the landscape — lush greens, powerful rivers, and a burst of animal activity you won’t see in the dry months.
The Night I Almost Drowned in My Tent
My first rainy season camping trip in Uganda taught me a brutal lesson. I pitched my tent in a dry riverbed because it looked flat and comfortable. At 3 AM, a flash flood from rain falling miles away rushed through camp, carrying away half my gear.
A local guide rescued me, laughing that the riverbed was dry for a reason — but only temporarily. He then showed me how to identify safe camping spots during the wet months, a skill that’s saved me countless times since.
What looks like a perfect camping spot in the dry season can become a death trap when the rains come. Now I look for subtle signs: slight elevation changes, water-worn rocks, and vegetation patterns that reveal where water naturally flows.
The Gear Swap That Changed Everything
Camping in the rain requires gear that works as hard as you do.
Waterproof Tent with Good Ventilation: My tent’s rainfly and sealed seams kept water out without trapping heat inside. Ventilation stops condensation from turning your shelter into a sauna.
Elevated Sleeping Pad: Sleeping off the ground made a huge difference. It kept me dry and insulated from the cold earth.
Quick-Dry Clothing: Cotton is out. I packed lightweight, quick-drying fabrics that kept me comfortable during wet spells and dried fast in the sun.
Waterproof Bags: Dry clothes and electronics are lifesavers. I used dry sacks inside my backpack to separate wet from dry gear.
Use a Tarp: Setting up a tarp over your cooking and social area creates a dry zone for eating and relaxing.
Secure Everything: Wind and rain can turn tents into parachutes. I made sure all guy lines were tight and used extra stakes where the ground was soft.
Create Drainage Trenches: Around my tent, I dug shallow trenches to channel water away. It’s a simple step that keeps your sleeping area dry.
Why Animals Don’t Disappear in Rain
Most tourists think wildlife viewing is terrible during the rains. On the contrary, animals don’t disappear in rain, they just change their patterns. Predators still need to eat, but they concentrate near reliable water sources rather than spreading across the landscape. This makes them more predictable.
During a rainy March in the Serengeti, I witnessed three different leopard kills in one day — something even my guide said was unusual. The big cats were hunting close to our camp because prey was concentrated near the only accessible water that hadn’t been flooded.
The Secret Season Discount Nobody Talks About
Here’s the financial reality I wish someone had told me sooner: my January trip to Tanzania cost 40% less than the identical itinerary would have in August. The same camps, same routes, same guides — at nearly half price.
Conservation fees, guide rates, and camp prices plummet during the wet months as operators desperately try to fill empty beds. I’ve negotiated private guides for the price of shared ones and secured luxury camps for standard rates.
During a rainy season visit to Zambia, the camp manager upgraded me to their honeymoon tent — complete with private plunge, simply because no one else had booked it hahaha.
What I Wish I Knew Before My First Rainy Season Camp
If I could go back and tell my younger self one thing about rainy season camping, it would be this: embrace the rain rather than fighting it.
For years, I structured my days trying to avoid rain, rushing activities, and missing experiences because I was obsessed with staying dry. Now I plan activities around the rain, using predictable weather patterns to my advantage.
In many African regions, rain falls in predictable afternoon bursts. Morning game drives are often rain-free and spectacular, with animals actively feeding and landscapes glowing in the soft light after overnight showers.
During a recent trip to Rwanda’s Akagera National Park, our guide knew exactly when the daily downpour would start, almost to the minute.
We planned our day accordingly, enjoying a breathtaking morning drive, a lunch during the heavy rain, and then an evening excursion when everything was freshly washed and glistening.
The Rainy Season Photography Secret
The dramatic skies during the rainy season have transformed my photography. Stormy clouds create contrast that makes wildlife stand out in ways impossible during the harsh light of the dry season.
My best-ever lion photographs came during a brief break between rainstorms in Kenya’s Masai Mara. The big cats were illuminated by an otherworldly golden light against dark storm clouds — a natural light setup professional photographers would pay thousands for.
Why You Should Book Your Rainy Season Trip Now
Camping through Africa’s rainy season isn’t just about dodging raindrops — it’s about embracing the full rhythm of the wild. With the right preparation, it’s an adventure that refreshes the soul, sharpens your senses, and deepens your connection to this incredible continent.
The combination of lower costs, fewer crowds, and stunning green landscapes makes this my favorite time to experience the continent.
If you have any questions or comments about camping through Africa’s rainy season, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below!
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Who am I? Well, the least you can say is that I am quite crazy about Africa, its nature, its climate, its culture, and more.
As a young woman in my twenties, I had already traveled to several African countries by traveling along in an overlander on my own and mostly camping ( or glamping ) and just fell in love with the diversity of it all.
So much, so that at the age of 26, I went back to university to study biology, which, unfortunately, I couldn’t finish because of health reasons (yes, I got sick from a tropical disease, oh cynicism). But this did not stop my dream of traveling back to Africa several times, and I still do.
My dream was back then to leave Europe and go study animal behavior, especially the elephants (sure, that’s every girl’s dream haha), but I am also very much intrigued by hyenas and other “ugly African animals“.
So, I “kind of” have a little bit of a scientific approach to my articles, when I write about African birds, for example. And most of all: the passion.
But life goes on, you move from one side of the country to the other, you get sick again and top it off with lower back problems, and before you know it, you are over 50 hahaha!
Now, I still travel to Africa, but take it a bit “easier” than the good old camping days, and stay in comfortable, yet affordable accommodations, together with my husband Wouter.
These are some of the countries I have traveled to: Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Tunisia, and a little bit of Lesotho LOL .
While clearly not being African territory, but Spanish, I also visited Gran Canaria and Tenerife, and location-wise, I consider them “African”, because of their climate and nature, sue me :-p
The last trip I took was to South Africa in the year 2023, and it sure got the fevers for Africa back! From the Barberton mountains to the Drakensberg and the Southcoast, one month wasn’t enough at all to see the whole country, so we’ll be back! At ease and with a little bit more luxury than in my younger days haha!
